


Two Boxes

by bjfic_archivist



Category: Queer as Folk (US)
Genre: Canon, No Slash, Season/Series 05
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-03-09
Updated: 2005-03-09
Packaged: 2018-12-27 14:13:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12082710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bjfic_archivist/pseuds/bjfic_archivist
Summary: Justin finds two mysterious boxes in Brian's closet.  Spoilers for season 4, spoiler-free for season 5. Comments appreciated!





	Two Boxes

**Author's Note:**

> Note from IrishCaelan, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Brian/Justin Fanfiction Archive](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Brian_Justin_Fanfiction_Archive). To preserve the archive, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in September 2017. I posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [The Brian/Justin Fanfiction Archive collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/bjfic/profile).

Justin got out of the shower and stood at the mirror, towelling himself off. He grinned as he realized that he could count on one hand the number of solo showers he’d had since he got back from California a month ago. He and Brian had quickly developed a morning routine: wake up, blow jobs, quick fuck in the shower, get dressed (another blow job if there’s time), coffee before heading out. Justin was back at PIFA, and Brian usually dropped him off there on his way to Kinnetik. The evening routine was less predictable, though. Sometimes Justin would go straight home after class, sometimes he would work on a project in one of the PIFA studios. Brian might be working late, in which case he’d call Justin’s cell and arrange to meet him later at the loft or Woody’s, Babylon, or the diner, depending on his mood.

Tonight, however, they were each spending “quality time” with their best friends. Brian was meeting Mikey for drinks and pool at Woody’s. Mikey had become quite the family man lately, living with Ben and Hunter and seeing Jenny as often as possible. Mel and Lindz, though they were still friendly, weren’t living together anymore. They had amicably decided to share custody of the children, even though Lindsay still had no legal rights where Jenny was concerned. Michael had taken it upon himself to make sure the breakup was as easy as possible on his daughter, and therefore spent a lot more time with her than he did with Brian. Justin admired this transformation, which was a nice change from the whiny Mikey that Justin had first encountered so many years ago.

Justin himself was going to a party at Daphne’s. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to this Breeder Bash, since he knew he wouldn’t get to spend much time with Daphne, and his track record at these things wasn’t exaclty stellar. However, he wasn’t going to sit home alone, and he didn’t really feel like going to Babylon solo either.

_Breeder Bash it is then,_ he sighed as he ran his fingers through his damp hair. It was still bleached by the California sun, and longer now. He had decided never to shave it off again. No more vigilante business for him. 

He walked naked from the bathroom to the bedroom and stood in front of the closet that he and Brian now shared, trying to decide what to wear. He probably wouldn’t be getting laid at the party, but living in California for six months had made him more conscious of his appearance. Out there, you never knew who you were going to run into, and you had to be prepared to look fabulous. Still, Justin hadn’t outgrown his love of cargo pants, so he selected his favourite pair and a tight blue t-shirt that set off his eyes. If he had to hang out with breeder boys all night, he might as well make their girlfriends want him, right?

“Shoes, shoes, shoes…” he muttered quietly, searching for the blue ones that went with his shirt. He couldn’t find them, but as he looked on the shelf inside the closet, he noticed two boxes that he had never seen before. They looked like shoeboxes, but they didn’t have a brand name or designer on them. They were a pretty nondescript grey, and Justin wondered what was inside. His curiosity got the better of him, and he pulled them both down and sat on the bed. They were surprisingly light, so they must not have shoes in them. He shook one. It sounded like… papers? He shook the other one, and heard the same sound.

He hesitated. Maybe these were some sort of private thing that Brian didn’t want him to see. But then, why would he keep them in the closet? Why not in a safety deposit box, or a locked cabinet at Kinnetik? What could they be? Medical records? He thought that he and Brian were honest about everything now. They had even seen a lawyer the week before and had wills drawn up. Kind of morbid, but they’d both been too close to death to ignore it.

Only one way to find out, Justin decided, and grabbed the nearest box. He lifted the lid, and looked at the contents. They were newspaper clippings. As he read the headline on the first one, he felt his stomach clench: “Gay Teen Attacked at Prom”. He started pulling out the other articles, all of which had similar headlines. 

“Teen in Critical Condition After Gay Bashing”

“Gay Community Outraged at High School Assault”

“Homophobic Student Arrested for Attacking Colleague”

The clippings were from several different sources, from the most conservative newspapers to _Pittsburgh Out!,_ and they all talked about the bashing. He pulled a few more articles out of the box , these ones talking about Chris Hobbs’ farce of a trial.

“Teen Pleads Guilty to Gay Bashing”

“Community Service for Gay Teen’s Attacker”

“Judge Rescued After Being Glued to Toilet Seat”

Justin snickered at that last one. He suspected Brian had something to do with that, though he had no proof.

As he glanced through the box, his mind reeled. Brian saved every article about the bashing, he thought. _Just when you think you know someone…._ This box must have been in the closet for years. How had he never noticed it? All of that time that he thought Brian didn’t love him, didn’t care. All along, he’d kept this box, a plain grey symbol of how much they had both almost lost. 

_If only I had known…._ If Justin had known about the box, would he have ever doubted Brian’s feelings? Would he have left Brian for Ethan? Suddenly, he felt sick. He ran to the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet before vomiting. As he cleaned himself up, he wondered what was in the second box. He was almost afraid to find out. 

Almost. 

He brushed his teeth and made his way back to the bedroom. He glanced at his watch, realizing that he was really late for Daphne’s party. Fuck it. She’d be pissed, but he knew she’d understand when he told her why he wasn’t there.

He sat back down on the bed and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly before opening the next box. Inside were more newspaper clippings. Justin pulled a few out. The first clipping he saw was from the PIFA newsletter. It was an announcement about a student art show. Justin recognized the date: it was the first art show he’d participated in since the bashing. There were several more of these announcements for other shows that his work had been in. 

Digging deeper, Justin found a flyer for the Center Carnival, one of the ones he had designed. He smiled to himself, knowing that even though he was with Ethan at the time, Brian still cared enough to keep this memento.

Justin glanced down and noticed that there were more newspaper clippings in the box. These were from real newspapers, not the PIFA newsletter. One of the healines caught his attention:

“Anonymous Crusader Campaigns Against Stockwell”

“Fuck,” Justin whispered as he scanned the text. He had never seen this article about his anti-Stockwell posters. He looked through the other articles and found that they were more of the same. His head was spinning again, and he took another deep breath. Justin had never fully grasped how much attention his poster campaign had garnered outside of Liberty Avenue. To tell the truth, he was kind of shocked. 

Once his pulse returned to normal, Justin reached into the box again. The next clipping was dated the day after the election and it spoke of Stockwell’s defeat. Justin skimmed the article until he found the part he was looking for.

_“There is speculation that an advertisement created by the Concerned Citizens for the Truth is at least partially responsible for last night’s election results,”_ Justin read. _“In the ad, the previously unknown group suggests that Police Chief Stockwell was involved in the cover-up of the murder of Jason Kemp, a male prostitute. It is believed that this information inspired the vast increase in voting turnout on Liberty Avenue, the heart of Pittsburgh’s gay district.”  
_

Justin grinned to himself, remembering how proud he had been that night. He recalled the look on Brian’s face upon hearing the election results – pure relief, confirmation that he had done the right thing. The rest of that night, they had chosen to forget Brian’s deep debt and just celebrated their freedom with their family, and later on, with just each other. Justin’s grin widened as he thought of the celebration that had gone on in this very bed. 

He shook his head as he reached into the box again, but he couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. The next thing he pulled out was from the Society page of the newspaper. It was a picture of him and Brian kissing at the Kinnetik launch party, public proof that he and Brian were indeed partners. That word still gave Justin a little thrill. 

There was one more clipping in the box, and Justin pulled it out. It was just a photo from the entertainment section of the newspaper. The caption read, “Actor Connor James and Director Brett Keller with _Rage_ co-creator Justin Taylor and guest at the film’s Hollywood premiere.” Justin laughed at that. Brian must have gotten a kick out of being referred to as “guest”. Guest? Try Inspiration. Lover. Role Model. Partner. Any of those would work.

Justin shook his head and chuckled as he put the clippings carefully back in the box and put both boxes back in the closet. 

_Brian has never been my guest,_ he thought. _Just like I'm not his. We’re partners, and we respect and love each other equally._ “And when he gets home,” Justin whispered as he began to undress, “I’m going to show him how much.”


End file.
